The Italian word for reveal is “svelare”. It’s so much more pleasurable to say as is much of the Italian Dialect, though I don’t speak it, I love to listen to the musicality of it. It is filled with dancing rhythms that evoke an almost pictorial journey of rolling hills and discovered valleys.
My husband and I had the privilege of spending 3 days in Venice. It was part of a business trip for him that I was fortunate enough to tag along on. We had known people that had been there multiple times and talked about how singular of an experience it was. But nothing quite prepared us for just how special it was or what our eyes were about to take in.
As the bus that we were taking from the hotel came closer and closer to the ferry that would take us across to Venice, we just kept giggling and saying, “we had no idea” in reference to the unique beauty of this hidden world we had only imagined, and now it was evident, had not even come close to beginning to comprehend.
As we disembarked from the ferry, we just stood there in awe, drinking in the sound and smell of the water, the aromatic smell of garlic and spices on the air from the nearby bistro and of course the music of the Italian language, choreographed by the animated hand motions that launched it into a dance.
I have always been drawn to anything that had history, the more ancient, the better. Natural patinas that come only from nature, make my mouth water. The colors that ran down the sides of structures that were hundreds of years old, were eye candy we couldn’t get enough of, as we strolled across bridges, over canals and into dead end alley ways and courtyards, without any concern that we were completely oblivious to where we were, or the time of day. We allowed Venice to reveal itself to us and we were intimately immersed in that sweet conversation.
As we continued to wander, we dove deeper and deeper into the city where there were fewer and fewer people. We imagined what it would be like to live in such a place. We looked up at open windows and wondered what life was like on the other side of the flower boxes dripping with flowers and vines. Clothes lines hung between houses, laced with laundry that resembled colorful flags as they swayed in the breeze, towering over the cobblestone street, drizzled in wild thyme cradling the ancient, warm stones. It was as if we were walking back through time and history with a long lost friend that was hundreds of years old and yet, still had so much left to say. Every turn, revealed a new surprise, a new view, an awakening of senses we had not before experienced and weren’t sure we ever would again.
The last ferry back to our hotel was about to leave for the day and in our wanderlust had lost track of any sense of our whereabouts. We decided to just walk in the opposite direction until we could hear people again. We faintly heard a sound that resembled a flock of geese on a distant shore and kept moving closer in it’s direction. As we turned a corner, we were surprised to not find geese. Standing in a courtyard were about 15 people having multiple conversations in Italian. The sound of their voices sounded like music as the cadences rose and fell, bouncing off the buildings while their hands helped tell the story of their songs. It sounded like a musical round, as what they were saying was being repeated in time as an echo. We stopped before they saw us and stood their quietly watching the scene with smiles on our faces, our hearts took a picture we would not forget.
We talk often about the total wonderment of that treasured memory and how privileged we feel to have been invited to witness such singular beauty as it was revealed to us. One of the things that makes life so sweet is the anticipation of what’s around the next turn, one surprise after another waiting with equal anticipation to reveal it’s secrets to us.
We didn’t leave our hearts in Venice, our hearts brought Venice home with us!
“Svelare” Is comprised of a wire frame, covered in natural fiber and coated with an overlay of gypsum, concrete, plaster and lime set into a wood box tray. The folded back edges of the opening represent the discovery of the experience as it unfolded. The aged tree bark, once hidden, now revealed, represents the complex textures of the experience.
Enjoy